Why Names Slip Away
Written by Studio AM.
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You meet someone and remember that she is a nurse and has just moved here. A few minutes later, you cannot remember her name. Why can one detail be harder to keep than another?
Connections can help us remember. Hearing the word "nurse" may bring up a hospital, a uniform, or someone you already know. The job gives you several familiar ideas to connect with the new person.
A name often offers fewer obvious clues. If she is called Rose, that does not tell you what she does or where she lives. It works as a label rather than a description. Names can have personal associations, but those connections may not yet exist when you first meet someone.
There is another possible reason. While the person says her name, you may be busy planning your next words. You have not paid close attention to the sound. Remembering a new name involves both noticing it and building a useful connection to it.
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Questions
Choose an answer. The explanation appears after you answer.
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Question 1 of 4
What is the main idea?
The answer is C: A new name may have few familiar connections, and divided attention can make it harder to remember.
The passage explains two possible difficulties: few ready-made connections and limited attention.
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Question 2 of 4
Which familiar ideas does the passage connect with "nurse"?
The answer is A: A hospital, a uniform, or someone you already know.
These three examples appear in the second paragraph.
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Question 3 of 4
In this passage, a "label" is
The answer is B: a name used to identify someone rather than describe them
The contrast with description shows how label is being used here.
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Question 4 of 4
The passage suggests that you would remember a name better if
The answer is C: it connected to something you already knew
The passage says connections can help memory, so forming one could help with a new name.
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